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Sunday, July 31, 2011

Watch the latest video at <a href="http://video.foxnews.com">video.foxnews.com</a>Grijalva, Rep. Raul (D-CD7): Rep. Grijalva, the co-chair of the Progressive Caucus in the House, released a statement blistering the emerging deal. Needless to say, he will likely be a "no" vote. The full statement is after the jump, but here's the concluding paragraph: "This deal is a cure as bad as the disease. I reject it, and the American people reject it. The only thing left to do now is repair the damage as soon as possible.”

McCain, Sen. John (R-AZ): Not to be left out, Sen. McCain engaged the aforementioned Dick Durbin in a 14-minute colloquy on the Senate floor this morning.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

I haven't had too much time to sit down at the computer the last few days - certainly not as much time as I would like to given the circumstances. So, here are a few things from the e-mail box and the twitter feeds and the Google-monster that I would like to post. As always, if you know of something that you think should be included, drop me an e-mail - I'd love to include it!
***Quayle, Ben (R-CD3): Quayle was interviewed by Fox News' Neil Cavuto this morning (Saturday, 8:15a.m., AZT). Below the video are some quotes pulled by Quayle's office.

On Speaker Boehner’s bill:

“The plan that we put forth in the House, it was not going
to solve all of the problems that we have, but this is going to take time… This
is what the Boehner bill did. We had caps on spending; we had a balanced Budget
Amendment. I voted for it and I think it was the right step.”

On the long-term fiscal situation:
"We need to move our country in the right fiscal direction.
We can’t be saying, ok look S&P and Moody’s might downgrade us. We have to
make the best decisions to try and make sure that we are tackling our fiscal
problems.”

On differences within the Republican Party:

“We are all in this together. We all have the same ideals and
we’re looking to push that same ideals. We have different strategy. Some people
try to get it all at once. Others are trying to say— hey look, we understand
where we are. We don’t have the Senate, we don’t have the White House. Let’s
get what we can get and move the country in the right direction. So, I don’t
think there is really any schism of ideology. It’s just a difference of opinion
in strategy. “

“While our economy is on the brink of a debt disaster, it is unconscionable that President Obama and the Senate Majority still refuse any plan that will not give the president a blank check. “The House of Representatives did the heavy lifting and passed a bipartisan plan, yet President Obama’s calls for ‘compromise’ seem to ignore this reality. “The Reid plan borders on embarrassing. It is full of smoke and mirrors instead of common sense and math. It will have a disastrous impact on our military, does not cut close to the amount it hikes, and advertises $1 trillion in phantom cuts. “Senator Reid continues to play games and disregard the will of the People’s House. It is clear that President Obama and the Senate Majority just don’t get it.”

***Gosar, Paul (R-CD1) : Rep. Gosar released a statement last night (Friday), after passage of the Boehner bill:

“I’ve said all
along, default is not an option for our country. The plan that offered the best
solution was Cut, Cap and Balance, however, the Senate refused to even vote on
that. We are forced to provide a compromise, which Speaker Boehner has forged
that overall cuts more in spending than gives in debt ceiling increases. This
conservative plan still moves the nation on a path to fiscal responsibility.”

“A year ago
Congress only talked about tax increases and more failed stimulus plans. Now
we are talking about, and voting on, measures that restore fiscal sanity. We
are moving our country forward.”

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

Arizona Senator John McCain (R-AZ) made front-page news a couple of days ago when he derided some conservative Republicans and Tea Party followers for insisting on a balanced budget amendment being part of the debt ceiling negotiations. Here is his initial speech on the floor of the Senate, on Wednesday night.

In reviewing this speech, it becomes apparent that - yes, he DOES agree that the Tea Partier's insistence on a balanced budget amendment is unreasonable given the lack of votes for it. However, he does it in the context of criticizing all the sides that he felt were holding up a resolution of the situation.

The following day, McCain seemed to backtrack somewhat when he went on Sean Hannity's Fox News show, though he did not backtrack as far as Hannity would have liked him to.

Finally, here is his interview on Greta Van Susteren's Fox News show on Friday night.

In
conclusion, Sen. McCain was very consistent in urging the President, the Democrats, and those in the Republican party to come to what he believed (believes) is the best solution. And, as of tonight, it seems very possible that McCain's proposal might be the one that the party's move towards on Sunday. (Hmmm, who is going to be on the Sunday talk shows?)

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

I will try to post 'em as I can find 'em - but, if you have any that you
would like to see included, please shoot me an e-mail at info@arizonaspolitics.com.

Kyl, Jon (R-AZ): Arizona's junior Senator delivered the Republican's weekly response this morning (Saturday). He delivered a speech blaming President Obama for not understanding that this is an "opportunity" to "rein in spending". ("President Obama is simply too committed to the European style of big government that his policies have set in motion." "...raise taxes and keep on spending.")McCain, John (R-AZ): Arizona's senior Senator sat down with Fox News' Greta Van Susteren last night. He repeats his softened criticism of those Republicans who have been holding out for a balanced budget amendment. "Let's be honest with the American people. We have to have a balanced budget amendment.... But, I have to be honest with my constituents and tell them that this Senate is not going to pass it, but we can't give up the fight."

Here's a good article in today's Arizona Republic, from Dan Nowicki and Erin Kelly, with comments from many in the Arizona delegation, including the oft-ignored House Democrats (Pastor and Grijalva).

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

I have not been able to break away (from work and other obligations) 'til now (2:00p.m., AZT), and it looks like there are a few Arizona-related developments that do not seem to be getting much attention in some of the Arizona media. Jeff Flake and Trent Franks were two of the key players in prompting the revision of the Boehner Bill that is now headed for a vote.

I will try to post 'em as I can find 'em - but, if you have any that you would like to see included, please shoot me an e-mail at info@arizonaspolitics.com.
***Flake, Jeff (R-CD6): Rep. Flake would appear to be a big winner in the developments of the last 24 hours - if winners are chosen based upon having an effect on the eventual bill to be voted on in the House. Yesterday, he talked about his speculation that he could help maneuver a "clean" Balanced Budget Amendment into the mix when the House would take up the Senate's Reid Bill. However, he apparently goaded Boehner into adding it into his bill instead.

Here's Flake's Tweet from approximately 8:30a.m.(AZT): "Good news. Looks like Boehner bill will now include BBA. Now it cuts, it caps, it balances. If so, I'm for it."

From the Associated Press article carried on the Arizona Republic's website this afternoon (1:00p.m., AZT): "With conservatives insisting on the addition of a balanced-budget amendment requirement, Speaker Boehner's bill will now cut, cap and balance" federal spending, said Rep. Jeff Flake of Arizona as Friday's scheduled vote approached.
An interview with Flake is featured on NPR's "All Things Considered" this afternoon. Audio is not yet available online, but can be heard on KJZZ, KUAT, and KNAU.

Flake news release: “The ball will now be in the Senate’s court. If the Boehner bill is
dead-on-arrival, as Senator Reid has said, I hope they’ll send us a plan of
their own so that we can make improvements to it.”

Franks, Trent (R-CD2): Franks was one of the couple of dozen (or so) Republican votes that Boehner could not rely on to vote for his bill yesterday. Today, Franks will be a "yes" vote. At about 1:30p.m. (AZT) this afternoon, a CBS News reporter tweeted that the Balanced Budget Amendment addition swung Franks.

Franks is being quoted by a Fox Radio reporter (Todd Starnes) as saying: "I think Harry Reid will do the most-malicious thing possible to this bill." (To my knowledge, Reid has only said that the Senate will vote it down.)

Quayle, Ben (R-CD3):News release with quote from Quayle:“I came to Washington with two main goals in mind: getting the economy going again and reducing the size and scope of government. I will vote for the Budget Control Act because I am committed to these goals. While it’s not perfect, the Budget Control Act is an important first step that puts in place structural spending reforms and cuts, requires passage of a balanced budget amendment, stands firm against tax increases and ensures that America pays its bills."

“Importantly, the Budget Control Act achieves our long-standing demand that spending reductions be greater than any debt ceiling increase. And unlike Senator Harry Reid’s plan, the reductions and caps are real."

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Arizona Sen. John McCain (R) made the big political splash last night when he spoke out about the Tea Party influence on the debt ceiling debate. He decried their insistence on working the Balanced Budget Amendment into the debt ceiling negotiations.

Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) is one of the key players in today's stall out in the House, and he was cited earlier as saying that he thinks the Boehner plan should go down today so that the Senate passes something and the House can then add a balanced budget amendment at the last minute. The thinking apparently goes that the time would be so short at that point that the Democrats would go ahead and vote for the Balanced Budget Amendment.

Are the senior Senator and the possible-next-junior Senator really going at each other, or can those statements be reconciled?

It would appear to me that Flake may have averted a direct staredown with McCain by probably defining his hope as being for a "clean" balanced budget amendment. The distinction would be that the House - last week in the Cap/Cut/Balance measure - approved a "dirty" balanced budget amendment. It is one that included automatic cuts, limits, formulas to force a balanced budget.

A "clean" version would be one that would only require a balanced budget and would force the Congress to decide how to get there.

I am guessing there is some frustration from both men, but there is certainly room for them to put it behind them.

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

With the House of Representatives debating this afternoon (now in indefinite recess), and many divergent viewpoints, I am trying to compile where our 10 Arizona Congresspeople (Representatives and Senators) are at this moment. If you have some links or info, please e-mail me (info@ArizonasPolitics.com). Thanks.

Flake, Jeff (R-CD6): Rep. Flake - who is running for the Senate next year - has been moved (by the National Journal) from "undecided" to "leans no". ABC reporter Tweets (3:00p.m., AZ Time) that Flake and Franks each had "private conversations" with Speaker Boehner and declined to comment to press afterwards.
This afternoon (1:08p.m., AZ Time), The Hill indicated that Flake was still leaning no and that he was thinking about other chess moves for the GOP - that the Senate should pass Reid's plan, then the House could attach a "clean balanced budget amendment" and pressure the Senate with it as the Aug. 2 deadline looms larger.

Franks, Trent (R-CD2): Rep. Franks has nothing from today on his website or his Twitter feed, as of 1:53p.m. (Arizona Time). And, a Washington Post article posted this morning lists Franks as "publicly undecided." The National Journal lists Franks as a "no" vote. ABC reporter Tweets (3:00p.m., AZ Time) that Flake and Franks each had "private conversations" with Speaker Boehner and declined to comment to press afterwards.

Gosar, Paul (R-CD1): Rep. Gosar was among the 20-30 House Republican freshmen who participated in a news conference this morning supporting the Boehner proposal. Facing the picture below, he is to the right of center. He did not speak, and has not issued any statements. He did "re-Tweet" Speaker Boehner's message claiming that he had the "only serious proposal."

Quayle, Ben (R-CD3): Webpage, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook silent, as of 1:37p.m. (AZ Time). However, the Washington Post political columnists Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake identified him (and Jeff Flake) as one of the 5 to watch today: "The Arizona freshman has said he would withhold a decision until the final bill came out, but his time to make a decision is rapidly running out. Quayle is just the sort of conservative establishment type — his father, Dan, was a senator from Indiana and vice president — that Boehner has to have to get to 217 votes."

Grijalva, Raul (D-CD7): The co-chair of the House Progressive Caucus, Rep. Grijalva spoke briefly today at a press conference rally to urge Congress to protect against cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

In his constituent newsletter yesterday, Grijalva suggested that the GOP is simply trying to cut programs they have been trying to eliminate: "They're using their manufactured crisis to try to cut important programs - likeMedicare, Medicaid and Social Security- that they've tried to eliminate for years. They're trying to tell us these programs, not the wars and upper income tax cuts of the past 10 years, are why we have a deficit. That's simply not true. In 2001, decades after these programs were created, we had a budget surplus of $258 billion. What changed? Well, I don't have to remind you of the last 10 years. We launched two wars and gave taxpayer money to corporations to destroy the economy."

Pastor
*
Kyl
McCain

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Monday, July 25, 2011

(9:32a.m. Clarifying that Grace Lutheran Church is in Phoenix, not Washington.
9:40a.m. Adding link to organization that held worker justice demonstration, in Phoenix.)

Former young House Speaker Kirk Adams - he is still young, no longer youngest and no longer House Speaker - and also-young state Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-LD16) had a fun little Twitter exchange a couple of days ago.

Gallego is in Washington for the National Council of La Raza annual conference. As this is being written, President Barack Obama is about to address the conference (9:50a.m., Arizona Time) about the economy and immigration, and Gallego has tweeted that he is in the "nosebleeds" for it.

But, on Thursday, when he arrived at the conference, Gallego tweeted "About 100 workers and allies at Grace Lutheran Church advocating for Worker justice." The demonstration took place in Phoenix.

Perhaps because Gallego had also tweeted about "violent Teaparty rhetoric", Adams - who resigned from the state House to run for the East Valley congressional seat being vacated by Jeff Flake - decided to respond.

"'Worker Justice' is having a job when unemployment is above 9%," tweeted Adams - perhaps simplifying the term a bit. Gallego retorted: "worker justice is when you give 500million tax cut to corporations you also give unemployment benefits extension."

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

Friday, July 22, 2011

The Arizona Republican Party is still operating in the red, but is hoping that action movie/reality TV star Steven Seagal and political reality TV star "Joe the Plumber" will get the money pipes flowing into positive territory.

GOP Chair Tom Morrissey just sent out an e-mail touting that Maricopa County Sheriff Posse member Seagal was now confirmed as the special guest at next Tuesday's "Freedom Festival" fundraiser. Seagal will be introduced by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who has not yet ruled out running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Jon Kyl. Joe the Plumber became a political icon near the end of the 2008 presidential campaign of Arizona's other Senator, John McCain.

The fundraiser takes place July 26, 6:30pm, at the Scottsdale Plaza Resort.

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) has practically cleared the field for the Republican nomination to replace Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ). His fundraising slowed a bit in the 2nd quarter (ended June 30), but he managed to increase his campaign's cash on hand figure to just more than $2 million dollars. ($2,002,620.56, to be exact.)

You will recall that he raised more than $1 million in the six weeks after he announced his candidacy. In the 13 subsequent weeks, he raised $830,226.10. A slower pace, but still not too shabby.

His expenses did skyrocket as his campaign matured. He again spent big (more than $80,000) on direct mail efforts in the 2nd quarter, and loaded up on consultants and fundraising expenses. His expenditures were approximately $88,000 in the 1st quarter; this period, they rose to $390,000. ($389,432.42, to be exact.)

A couple of Republicans have reported raising some money for the primary, Douglas McKee ($19,752 cash on hand) and Bryan Hackbarth (former mayor of Youngtown, $206 cash on hand with $1,000 debt). Many more high profile Republicans who were reportedly interested in the race have either taken a pass or remained on the sidelines. No Democrats have filed yet, although a couple have started "exploratory committees".

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Arizona Rep. Ben Quayle (R-CD3) is featured in an op-ed in today's Los Angeles Times. He is held up as an example of the group of freshmen Republicans in the House of Representatives who have had a major impact on the recent deficit-reduction negotiations tied to raising the nation's debt ceiling.

Quayle talked about the need to make sure that the U.S. does not default on payments on the debt (or Social Security, Medicare, military and veterans), but also noted that he believes that the Executive branch is "fear mongering" on the consequences of not getting the issue resolved before August 2:

Quayle was elected with "tea party"
support, but he's not a bomb-thrower; he says he's willing to vote for an
increase in the debt ceiling at some point. "I do not want to have a default,"
he said. But he's not willing to compromise easily. The debt ceiling, he says,
gives conservatives the leverage they need to force deep spending cuts. "This is
the time for us to rein in federal spending," he said.. . .

And there's a deep divide of mistrust between House conservatives and the Obama
administration. Like many Republicans, Quayle says he's skeptical of the
administration's claims that Aug. 2 is a real drop-dead date and that the
consequences of failing to raise the debt ceiling would be
catastrophic.

"There has been a lot of fear-mongering coming out of the
administration," he said. Even if the debt ceiling doesn't rise, he said, "I
believe we can still pay the interest on our debt, pay Social Security and Medicare,
pay military salaries and veterans' benefits. And they can do some
prioritization after that."

Quayle says his constituents back home in
Phoenix expect him to rein in the budget — and to hang tough.

"Some don't
want us to raise the debt ceiling at all," he said. "I tell them that even
though we don't like the debt that's been accumulated, we need to honor it. You
have a teenager who misuses a credit card, you tear up the card, but you still
have to pay the bill."

The veteran Washington reporter McManus (who wrote the op-ed) notes that Quayle and his colleagues are going to have to figure out if they can agree to a deal with most - but not all - of what they and their Tea Party supporters were looking for. (Read the entire op-ed here.)

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Last week, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer was compelled to officially call for a recall election for Russell Pearce's State Senate seat in LD18. Today, she has penned a letter sent out by the group opposing Pearce's recall, professing her strong support and respect for her friend - and, asking for money. (The full text of the Governor's e-mail is re-printed below the jump.)

Brewer notes that the Tea Party Senate President* needs to win because he "will help save our country from an Obama administration dedicated to undermining
our nation's immigration laws." She also plays up her efforts to fight the same bogeymen (bogeypersons?) as Pearce: Obama, Janet Napolitano, Nancy Pelosi, Al Sharpton, the media bias and "everyone else in Washington who think they know what is best for Arizona."

She rattles off several pieces of legislation - sponsored by Pearce and that she signed - which she helped provoke this recall by "those who boycott and hurt our state." The list starts with the well-known SB1070 (still largely on hold pending Supreme Court appeal), and includes a bill that lengthened sentences and restricted early release "for these felony offenses".

The fund-raising appeal from the Governor is a strong signal that she will not stay on the sidelines during the recall campaign, as some may have assumed that she would. We have asked the Governor's office how active she will be in the recall campaign, and will let you know once we have received a response.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Which Arizona Congressperson is quoted in the Washington media as using the above Harry Potter-related metaphor this past week on the eve of the release of the final movie installment of the incredibly-popular series?

In the face of the actions by various Slytherins in the final installment, it may not have been the analogy he (we will eliminate the three Democrats in the delegation, due to the attempt to demonize the federal government) was reaching for. Nonetheless, he certainly gets points for his overall knowledge of and participation in the big midnight releases of the books and movies.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Arizonans might be surprised to learn that long-time East Valley Congressman and leading GOP candidate for U.S. Senate, Jeff Flake (R-CD6) had been "left for dead" and has made an "unlikely political comeback" that can be contrasted with the falls of the likes of Ensign, Edwards and Weiner (among others). But, that is exactly what the Washington Post is reporting in today's edition (page A15) in its profile of Flake.

The surprise comes not because voters in Flake's Congressional district (East Valley) ever have come close to voting him out, but because he had thwarted the expected upward trajectory within the House Republicans by speaking out bluntly against earmarks. (Gasp!)

In any event, it is an interesting article for Arizonans to review. And, as Flake apparently acknowledged several times in being interviewed for the story, he did feel that he went through "some tough days" when he was being punished by the GOP leadership for his "bad behavior."

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

Tucson Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-CD7) was interviewed on MSNBC this morning after President Obama's news conference. He reiterated that members of the Progressive Caucus are still committed to making sure that any agreement contain tax increases as well as cuts in core social programs.

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.

(The following includes a bit more personal feelings than I typically express in a report. Therefore, it has been labeled as "commentary".)

I had lots of plans (but little time) for the posts I was going to make upon my return to the desert in time for tonight's Home Run Derby. But, this e-mail I just received changed those plans.

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6 and Senate candidate) sends out a weekly "So Just How Broke Are We" news release. He tries to tie OUR COUNTRY'S fiscal situation to some newsy tidbit/holiday/etc in a way that is clever and designed to get some notice. I often enjoy them and occasionally (privately) critique them. I have tremendous respect for the Congressman's views and his persistence in working on governmental fiscal issues. I have never tried to gauge how many people read and/or are influenced by this weekly series.

But, the illogic in the one that just came out passed beyond "too cutesy", in my sometimes-humble opinion. To throw in a baseball term in honor of the All-Star Game, he stretched too far and stepped away from his base.

Maybe if a few of us give the candidate for U.S. Senate some feedback on it, it will prompt him (his office?) to work on the analogies - and, to maybe not try so hard to be timely/cutesy/clever/etc. Here it is:

An English scientist now believes that the first person to reach
the age of 150 has already been born and could be followed within 20 years by
that the first person to reach the age of 1,000.
Though living to either of these ages would certainly be a feat, even more
astonishing would be the age to which a person would need to live in order to
pay down the U.S. debt, based on the average annual wage per U.S. citizen of
$40,711 according to 2009 data. The U.S. is so broke that a person would need to
reach the ripe old age of approximately 354 million to completely pay down our
(current) $14.4 trillion debt. “Let’s not stick to
same old same old when it comes to reducing our debt,” said Flake. (emphasis in original)

Flake is running to replace Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) next year. He raised more than $1 million in the six weeks after he announced his candidacy. It would take the average Arizonan (using Flake's average annual wage for a U.S. citizen and assuming Arizonans' average is the same) 25.37 YEARS to match Flake's campaign contributions for only that 6-WEEK period.

Thank God more than one person contributes to his campaign, and thank God we all contribute - in one way or another - to our government. This kind of illogic does not help our national discussion on these serious issues; it harms it. And, I sincerely doubt that that is Rep. Flake's intent.

The amount of my *tremendous respect* plummeted this morning; and, multiplied by the number of average Arizonans who also see the illogic in his press release, the amount could take uncalculated years of releases to recover it.

We welcome your comments about this post. Or, if you have something unrelated on your mind, please e-mail to info-at-arizonaspolitics-dot-com. Thanks.